Wimbledon is under increasing pressure to sever its sponsorship ties with Barclays due to the bank's support for fossil fuel projects.
The All England Lawn Tennis Club (AELTC), which hosts the Championships from 1st to 14th July, has been criticised by several campaign groups for its choice of banking partner. This comes after Barclays suspended its sponsorship of Live Nation festivals last week when bands began withdrawing from events in a pro-Palestine campaign against the bank's alleged links to defence companies involved in the Gaza conflict.
The sports industry is also facing increased scrutiny over its choice of sponsors, particularly those associated with high emissions. Last year, film stars and celebrities, including actress Emma Thompson, urged Wimbledon to end its sponsorship deal with Barclays. In 2022, Tennis Australia ended its partnership with oil and gas giant Santos following a grassroots campaign.
Andrew Simms of the Badvertising Campaign stated that sport is being used as "a billboard by sponsors who threaten its future", adding that Wimbledon should tell them it is "game over". He said: "Wimbledon conjures bright green courts and spotless tennis whites, but its sponsors Barclays and Jaguar Land Rover are busy on one hand financing unrepentant climate polluters like the oil companies Shell and ExxonMobil, and on the other, pushing over-sized, dangerous and heavily polluting SUVs,".
"June looks set to be the hottest on record, and the latest research shows athletes at risk from the extreme weather caused by global heating. Wimbledon's choice of sponsors not only disregards the long-term health and well-being of tennis players, but is a snub to local communities who endure the dangers and air pollution of 'autobese' SUVs."
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Greenpeace's co-executive director Areeba Hamid slammed Barclays for its Wimbledon sponsorship, highlighting the bank's investment in fossil fuels and alleged links to defence companies involved in the Gaza conflict. "Is climate destruction and war the sort of vibe Wimbledon bosses are going for this year? " she queried.
"We urge Wimbledon organisers to follow the lead of Latitude, Download and others and take a rain check on their unsavoury relationship with Barclays." Tony Burden, head of the Make My Money Matter campaign, also weighed in: "Barclays' sponsorship of Britain's cultural events has been exposed again; Wimbledon will be next."
"Our experience is that Barclays says it supports a 1.5C world, but in reality, undermines it by financing fossil-fuel expansion. No decent organisation should be sponsored by Barclays," he declared.
Joanna Warrington from Fossil Free London said, "It's no wonder the bank wants to co-opt this cultural gem. Wimbledon must see through this cynical attempt to use the tournament as cheap cover for its financing of destructive companies and end its sponsorship deal before the tennis begins in July."
A spokesperson for the AELTC said Barclays is an "important partner", while outlining their ambition to make a "positive impact on the environment" as a measure of a successful Championship. The efforts include using renewable electricity, de-gassing the kitchens, offering low-carbon options on menus, sending zero waste to landfill and promoting a culture of reuse.
"We know this is one of the defining challenges of our time and we are fully committed to playing our part," they stated. "Barclays is an important partner of ours and we are working closely with them in a number of areas, including through our Set For Success programme, which is helping to support disadvantaged secondary students in schools across the UK, enabling young people to gain confidence and build leadership skills to improve their future opportunities in life."
A spokesperson for Barclays explained that the bank provided essential financial services to US, UK and European public companies that supplied defence products to Nato and its allies, and did not directly invest in the companies.
On the topic of climate, they stated: "Barclays is committed to financing an energy sector in transition. Alongside financing current energy needs, we are working with energy companies to build the clean energy system of tomorrow, with a target to provide one trillion US dollars of sustainable and transition finance by 2030. Since 2020, our financed emissions for the energy sector have reduced by 44%, exceeding our 2030 target."
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